Piatt and Ferry at top of West Penn Am in round two
By Mike Dudurich • June 18, 2024
The first round of the 124th West Penn Amateur had a little bit of everything Monday.
Played at Chartiers Country Club, the day had the expected severe heat, some welcome breezes and of the course that byproduct of big heat, thunderstorms.
The resultant two-hour delay means a large chunk of the field did not finish their 36 holes on Monday and will do so before the final round gets started Tuesday.
Those who haven’t finished will resume their rounds with a shotgun start at 8 a.m. Once that is completed, the lowest 32 scores and ties. The final round is tentatively scheduled to get underway at 11 a.m.
Two players sit atop the leaderboard, with only one of them having completed 36 holes.
Nathan Piatt, a recent graduate from Radford University, was able to complete his day just before the horn sounded to suspend play at 5:09.
He’s tied with Ryan Ferry of the Country Club at 6-under, but Ryan completed only 9 holes of his second round.
“I played pretty good today,” Piatt said. “I had a lot of opportunities on the greens, and I putted well. I’ve been playing well. It’s been good.”
Piatt made birdies on five holes on the front for a 30 in his first round. He made bogeys on two of his first three holes on the back and made just birdie to finish with 66. Piatt came back with a 67 in the afternoon.
Piatt said he’s not planning to immediately turn professional.
“No, I’m going to work in the family business for a while, work on getting better and stay amateur for now,” he said.
J.F. Aber played in the Sunnehanna Amateur for the first-time last week, making the cut.
He looked like he was on his way to a strong performance on Monday as well.
Aber posted a 68 in the first round had kept himself in good position with a 34 on the front nine of the second round. But after five straight pars, something happened.
“I felt very confident today,” he said. “And I think to play as well as I did last week, it proved to me that playing at another level is attainable.”
But then…
“I had a bad chip, a three-putt, a bad drive and a bad break in a bunker,” Aber said. He finished with a 73 and will wait to see how those who haven’t finished fare this morning to see if he makes the cut.
Fifty-three players did not finish their second rounds, although there will be withdrawals after the delay due to work and other obligations.
About the WPGA
Founded in 1899, the Western Pennsylvania Golf Association is the steward of amateur golf in the region. Started by five Member Clubs, the association now has nearly 200 Member Clubs and 34,000 members. The WPGA conducts 14 individual competitions and 10 team events, and administers the WPGA Scholarship Fund and Western Pennsylvania Golf Hall of Fame.